It Takes Two
by mitewhimsical
Summary: Nikki is now 20 and is back in Playa Linda after five years away, during which her life has changed immeasureably. Hope you enjoy, please read and review if possible, your comments really mean a lot to me. CHAPTER 12 NOW UP. usual disclaimers apply :D
1. Chapter 1

Nikki ran a hand through her hair as she attempted to make her way through the bustling crowd at the airport whilst making sure that the other arm still gripped her daughter tightly to her chest.

As Lucie rested her little blonde head on her mom's shoulder, Nikki felt a wave of calm wash over her despite the madness that was going on around her.

At long last, she emerged at the front of the crowd, her cheeks flushed from the effort, and her eyes sought out the face of her Aunt Ava. Where was she?

After several minutes, Nikki's eyes lit up as she saw her aunt glide round the corner, the sunlight glancing beautifully off her glossy blonde hair.

"Aunt Ava! How was your flight! We've just been dying to see you, haven't we hon?"

Nikki gently prodded her little girl who had quickly fallen asleep in the comfort of her mom's arms. Ava chuckled at Lucie's adorably bemused expression.

"Nikki, she's getting even more gorgeous each time I see her!"

She looked down and smiled at Lucie.

"Yes you are my lovely little sweet-pea!"

Nikki rolled her eyes in loving amusement. At this rate, Lucie's ego would become massive before she'd even reached her 6th birthday – not that Nikki disagreed with her aunt. Lucie was a stunning little girl, having inherited her mother's creamy and clear complexion, and her father's arresting blue eyes.

"Ava, are you ready? My car's in the parking lot, and we only have about five minutes left on the ticket."

"Practical as ever, Nikki. Glad to see you haven't changed much!"

Nikki grinned as she put Lucie down and grabbed onto her little hand.

"I've missed you too, Aunt Ava. Now let's get out of this stinking airport!"

The two women strolled out of the airport with Lucie trotting along in between them and soon they were driving down the Miami freeway, the sun shimmering on the ocean's surface as they drove along the coastline.

When they reached Nikki's apartment, in a complex facing onto the beach, Lucie had already fallen asleep with her head against the car window, so Nikki tucked her up in bed and tenderly kissed her forehead.

Coming out of the bedroom, Nikki saw that her aunt had been watching her carry her daughter to bed.

"You two are so sweet together, Nikki."

She paused and took a deep breath.

"Is Cam still completely oblivious?"

Nikki groaned and walked angrily out onto the balcony. Soon afterwards she felt her aunt by her side.

"Nikki, I know - "

"Aunt Ava, I made my decision a long time ago. And I've been living with it since then. I've dealt with it, and we're doing just fine together, so I really don't see what else there is to it."

Right in those few moments Ava didn't see her twenty year old niece looking back at her – she saw a fifteen year old Nikki, burdened by life and its problems, and yet determined to overcome them no matter what.

"You already know why I didn't tell him. At the time Cam was afraid to even kiss me in public in case his dad saw. I couldn't put him, me or our baby in that kind of danger. Obviously, you being away didn't help - "

Ava opened her mouth in protest but Nikki silenced her.

" - but I know it's not your fault. At all. So please, whatever you do, DON'T blame yourself! Please."

Ava couldn't stop herself from reaching out to hold her niece tightly in her arms, as a single tear rolled down her cheek. Nikki, who had never been massively comfortable with huge displays of affection, held on for a few moments and then broke away abruptly, wiping her own eyes quickly with her fingers.

"Um, I should go wake her. If she sleeps all afternoon I'll never be able to get her to sleep tonight!"

Watching Nikki hurry into the bedroom, Ava wondered at her niece's ability to always put others first, even when it jeopardised her own happiness.

Having seen Cameron moping around Playa Linda after Nikki had left, Ava knew that he had missed her, and she wished fervently that Nikki would get over her pride and finally make contact again.

Only her niece could make that decision, but Ava hoped that she came to her senses soon.


	2. Chapter 2

Nikki wrinkled her nose as she sleepily, and very grudgingly, opened her eyes. Was that pancakes she could smell frying? At first she panicked, thinking for one moment of insanity that Lucie had gotten hold of the stove and somehow managed to set something on fire, but then Nikki relaxed as she remembered the previous day.

Hearing footsteps in Nikki's room, Ava called down the hall, "Is that you honey? We're having pancakes if you want any".

Shuffling towards the little kitchenette of her flat, Nikki wandered over to the table and kissed her daughter's blonde curls before slumping down beside her and cutting up her pancakes for her.

"I'm good thanks, Aunt Ava, I'll just grab some coffee on the way to the store."

"Oh, don't worry about it, I took Lucie about an hour ago and we picked up a few groceries. Didn't we sweetie?"

Lucie ignored Ava and continued to concentrate on the serious work of smearing every single corner of her pancakes with syrup, managing to get it scrunched up in her hair and down the front of her little (white, unfortunately) sundress.

Despite apparently coming second best to Lucie's breakfast treats, Ava continued undeterred.

"Nikki …"

"Don't say it Aunt Ava!"

Nikki could tell almost exactly what was about to come out of her aunt's mouth, for the simple reason that she said it pretty much every time she saw Lucie.

Ava sighed deeply and looked wistfully at the little girl sitting between her and her niece.

"Hon, she reminds me of Cameron the more and more I look at her."

"I knew it! Ava, have you ever thought that maybe I _also_ see Cam every time I look at her? And that maybe sometimes it's hard for me because of that? How would you feel if cuddling your own daughter made you insanely happy and at the same time completely broke your heart?"

Nikki looked at her aunt determinedly trying to avoid crying again. Instead of looking away, Ava surprised her niece by staring straight back and saying calmly,

"Of course I know what that's like. Every day you came down for breakfast, every time I took you to the beach, every time I kissed you goodnight, I could see my sister's face. You and her were so alike, Nik."

This time it was Ava's turn to try and stop the tears collecting in the corners of her eyes. She glanced across at Lucie, who had evidently sensed the sadness in the atmosphere and looked up at her mom, tugging on her pyjama sleeve.

Looking down at her daughter, the greatest treasure she would ever own, Nikki knew immediately what had to be done.

It had almost killed her when her parents had been taken away from her, and yet here she was depriving her little Lucie of her father. She took her little girl into the bathroom to wipe down her face and hands and get her a change of outfit, before calling her Aunt Ava to her.

Ava stood in the doorway and smiled at her niece. Nikki sighed.

"I have to go to Playa Linda, don't I?"

"It's up to you, Nikki. You know that."

Pushing all her doubts and fears to the back of her mind, Nikki hoisted Lucie up onto her waist and carried her into their shared bedroom, where she began to fling clothes and necessities into a suitcase.

"Where are we going, mommy?"

"We're going to Aunt Ava's house, in California. That's exciting, right?"

Lucie gave a cute little chuckle and ran to her toy cupboard to fetch all the things she would be bringing with her.

"Oh honey, we don't have room for all those. Look, we've only got a little case! I don't think your Easy-Bake oven is gonna fit, do you?"

Seeing Lucie's face drooping, Nikki compromised. "

Ok then, choose one little thing. You can take it on the plane with you."

Her heart sank as she saw Lucie go straight for the little cuddle blanket she had – the remnants of a shawl that she and Cameron had once sat beneath, watching the fireworks …

But that was a long time ago. Nikki shook the thought from her mind and turned all her energy back to packing. She called out into the hall, "Ava, you haven't unpacked yet, right? I hope you don't mind your vacation in Miami being shortened a little …"


	3. Chapter 3

The plane took off with a shuddering start and Nikki watched Miami quickly fade beneath them as the hostesses made their way down the aisles.

"Good afternoon ma'am, would you like something to drink?"

The day after she had made the uncharacteristically spontaneous decision to fly back to Playa Linda, Nikki felt like she was in dire need of some sort of alcohol refreshment. She checked her watch – oh what the hell, it was past noon, after all.

"I'll have a glass of wine, please."

"Red or white?"

"White, please."

Ava watched her down the entire cup at once and shake her head with the feeling of the alcohol entering her bloodstream.

"Don't worry Aunt Ava, that's the only one I'll have." She rolled her eyes. "Come on, do you really think I'm stupid enough to turn up drunk in front of Cam, of all people?"

Smiling she turned back to Lucie who was drawing a picture.

"What's that hon?"

Nikki tried to make out the multi-coloured mass of squiggles and straight lines but all she could see were the words 'mommy' and 'Lucie' at the top of the page.

"Look, mommy. This is our house, and there's me and you!"

Seeing their life put so starkly on paper before her, Nikki realised that no matter how much she loved her daughter, no matter how much she looked out for her; there would always be an issue with being a single parent family. She decided it was better to introduce Cam to his daughter now than to wait any longer and be faced with embarrassing and awkward questions from Lucie when other kids asked her where her daddy was.

After several more hours, Lucie was asleep, yet again, and Nikki and Ava themselves looked like they were about to start snoozing. Thankfully, however, there was a beep indicating they should fasten their seatbelts once more, and within minutes they had bumped down onto the runway. While Nikki was glad that they could finally get out of the stuffy and crowded aeroplane, she felt sickened to feel butterflies flapping in the pit of her stomach.

"Ava, would you mind taking Lucie this afternoon? It's just that I'd rather speak to Cam alone, before he gets a chance to guess why I'm really here. It's not that I'm ashamed of Lucie, not at all … I just think that if he found out about her straight away it would be kind of a shock …"

"Of course, sweetie, I'll take her back to the house. Derrick'll be there anyway, although Johnny's away this week."

"Ok thanks, that would really help me out." Nikki turned to Lucie. "Pumpkin, you're gonna see your uncle Derrick again! Except this time hopefully he won't let you eat an entire carton of ice-cream …"

However, things did not go at all according to plan when they waited several hours at the luggage carousel before realising that Nikki's suitcase was not going to turn up. Whilst Ava could lend Nikki some spare clothes for her, there would be nothing at the house for Lucie to wear, unless Ava could quickly fashion a dress out of a pillowcase.

"Ok, well, change of plan I guess! I'll have to take Lucie out shopping to get some stuff – god, that suitcase even had her diapers in it! OK, let me make a list of what she'll need …"

Watching her niece get back to her old practical self, Ava fished in her purse for her money, got out a wad of bills and pressed them into Nikki's hand.

"Aunt Ava, no! I've been borrowing from you for the past five years - "

"So I guess one more little shopping trip won't bankrupt me."

Ava smiled and Nikki grudgingly accepted.

"Ok, well I'll see you back at the house in an hour or so. How about we go out for dinner tonight?"

"Sounds good, Aunt Ava – call me and let me know where we're going, so I can pick up something for Lucie to wear to it!"

They both chuckled, said their goodbyes, and started off in opposite directions.

Nikki strolled into town, Lucie by her side, eventually finding a little store selling baby products. She picked up Lucy and carried her inside.

"Can I help you?"

"Yes, please, I need everything that's on this list!"

The shop assistant looked flustered by such an organised customer – young mothers and pregnant women were not usually the most prepared shoppers – but took the list and guided Nikki round the small store. As she passed by the window, Nikki saw an all-too-familiar face park his car and make his way to the juice bar next-door. Her heart leapt dangerously as she then saw him spot her, his eyes widening in surprise.

"I'm sorry; could you excuse me for one second?"

Nikki tried to subtly hand Lucie to the store assistant before smoothing down her hair and taking a massive breath.

She and Cameron met on the sidewalk in a gigantic, crushing, hug.

"Oh my god - Nikki! I've missed you! Where have you been?"

"I left to go to school and since then I've just been hanging out in Miami."

"Wow! Hang on, you've finished school already?"

"Yeah … graduated early."

"God, Nikki, you look _amazing_ …" Cameron had a regretful look in his glittering blue eyes.

"Not so bad yourself!"

Nikki really meant it … while Cameron's physique had seemed awkward and gawky as a teenager, as an adult, he looked … well, he looked hot, Nikki had to admit. His hair was darker now, and shorter, but he had grown a couple of inches and become generally more muscular.

"Anyway, what were you doing …" He gestured towards the store she had just been in.

Nikki responded quickly – maybe a little _too_ quickly.

"Oh, buying clothes for a friend. She just had a baby."

"Ok, cool. Well, if you're done, maybe we could get a drink or something? What are you doing back in Playa Linda, anyway?"

"I guess I'd just been away a while, and I just … missed it." She glanced up at Cameron.

"About that drink?"

"Cam, I'd love to, but I still have to get this present … but Aunt Ava and I are going out for dinner tonight, wanna - "

The end of her sentence hung in the air between them as Lucie, having freed herself from the grip of the store assistant, came scuttling over and attached herself to Nikki's legs.

"Mommy?" she said, tugging on Nikki's jeans.

Cameron repeated the question quietly, wonder in his face.

"Mommy?" He paused, and cleared his throat. "How, uh … how old is she?"

"She's five, Cam. Her name is Lucie."

Nikki watched Cameron's eyes glaze over as he looked at the little girl, and a fat tear rolled from each eye. Nikki's entire body was tensed up waiting for him to say something.

"Nikki … she's beautiful."


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey guys, glad you've all enjoyed the first few chapters. Let me know if you have any suggestions, and keep reading and reviewing! Thanks!**

**xoxo**

Cameron awkwardly cleared his throat.

Although math had never exactly been his strong subject, he flushed as he calculated that five years ago would pretty much have been around the time that Nikki had left Playa Linda. He remembered the day perfectly, to his dismay.

**Flashback**

She had gotten a ride with her aunt to his mom's place and he had opened the door to see her with tears in her eyes looking so frail and helpless standing on his doorstep. Immediately wrapping his arms around her, Cameron had invited her in, but had been upset and confused when she brushed him off.

"Nik, what's up? I thought you said - "

"Cameron, I have to leave."

"What, right now? But - "

She cut him off for the second time.

"I have to leave Playa Linda." She bit her lip. She had never been anything other than one hundred percent honest with Cameron, and she couldn't bear the pain of having to hide the truth from the boy that she loved so much.

"I've decided to follow Bradin to college. I might be able to enrol early; who knows … I just feel like this town's gotten too small all of a sudden." Which wasn't completely a lie.

Cameron started questioning her anxiously.

"Look, Nik, if this has anything to do with what happened the other day … I feel absolutely awful. If I ever would have known … Dad doesn't mean the things he does when he's drunk. Trust me."

Seeing Nikki's expression as he tried to yet again make excuses for his father, Cameron changed tack, realising that no amount of apologising for what had happened would take away Nikki's pain.

"To see him hurt you like that … let me tell you, I wanted to kill him. It's probably a good job he's in jail right now or I swear to god I wouldn't be able to stop myself from wringing his neck after seeing those bruises he's landed you with."

There was a long silence, and not an entirely comfortable one, like it usually was.

"Cam, he called me a whore. Do you even know what that would feel like?"

Nikki raised her chin so that her soulful brown eyes locked onto Cameron's.

"Did you … did you tell him? About us? I mean …" She broke off, embarrassed. "_You _know. About our night at my place?"

Cameron looked shocked.

"Nikki, no! Of course not! I haven't even spoken to him in the last couple of months – I thought he was in rehab, just like the rest of you did."

She gathered herself and leaned over to give Cameron a final soft kiss on the cheek.

"Well, I'll see you soon Cam."

Clutching his hand tightly and giving it a quick squeeze, Nikki finally broke away and walked back over to the car where her aunt was waiting.

Cameron waited until the car was completely out of sight until sitting down on the front step and letting the tears fall fast and hard.

** End of flashback **

His eyes focused on Lucie, who was now pestering her mom to pick her up.

"Nikki, who's her father?" Cameron asked, despite having the feeling that he pretty much already knew the answer.

Despite the somewhat serious circumstances, Nikki had to smile. Honestly, Cam could be so dense sometimes.

"Cam … you know it's you. Who else would it be?"

For some reason, rather than feeling shocked or scared, Cameron simply felt happy for the first time in years – purely, joyously happy. But then his mind was diverted back to the mathematics of it all.

"But Nik, we only …" he dropped his voice to a whisper to avoid Lucie hearing, "we only had sex three times."

She rolled her eyes.

"I know, but there's no other logical explanation … You were my first, Cam, and I still haven't hooked up with anyone else. Tragic, I know. Anyway, we only had sex on three _occasions_. We did it plenty more than three _times_." She caught his eye knowingly, making him blush.

God, Nikki, she scolded herself – you've only been in town for less than an hour and you're _flirting_ already?

A little cry of "mommy" coming from somewhere around her ankles alerted Cameron once more to the strange and alien feeling of being a father. A FATHER. Wow. It sounded serious when put that way. Suddenly he felt a little dizzy.

"Cam, I realise this is a huge shock. Let me make the last five years up to you, or try, at the very least – dinner, tonight, my Aunt Ava's house? I'll attempt to explain things a bit better rather than coming at you like a bolt from the blue on the sidewalk."

Cameron smiled, and agreed to come round that night.

"I can't even tell you how happy I am that you're back, Nikki." He grinned. "Playa Linda was never the same without you."

"I'm glad I'm back too." Nikki really meant it. Now her off-the-cuff idea seemed to be the best she could have ever come up with – she only reprimanded herself for not doing it sooner.

"Honey, say bye-bye, we're going to Aunt Ava's now. Say bye sweetie!"

Lucie gave the strange man standing in front of her a quick wave as Nikki scooped her up and carried her away, turning her head constantly to look back at him, as he watched them walk away.


	5. Chapter 5

After several minutes, Cameron realised that he had been standing in the same spot opposite his car just staring into space, and quickly pulled himself together.

A father! He still couldn't believe it. He, Cameron Bale, had a beautiful little girl who was already five years old. Shocked as it was, it suddenly occurred to Cameron that he ought to be mad at Nikki for what she had done – he hadn't even known that she was pregnant, and she had obviously done her best to keep it that way.

However even this mild anger was completely quelled by the rising joy in his gut, a feeling which was sweeping through him so strongly he couldn't help but let a huge smile break open on his face.

He guessed this was what fathers of newborn babies felt like – wanting to tell every stranger on the street that he had a daughter, the best daughter there had ever been and ever would be, the perfect child in every way.

Despite having only met her mere moments ago, Cameron was already deeply in love with Lucie. When he'd looked at her heart-shaped face, having been slightly unsettled by Lucie's uncanny resemblance to her mother, it was as if he'd known her forever. When she had looked into his eyes, they had shared countless secrets without saying a word, the kind that only a father and his little girl could ever know.

This goofy look of happiness remained plastered to Cameron's face all day long, as he simply wandered around Playa Linda, seeing the world through different eyes.

When Nikki opened the door that evening this look that she saw on Cameron's face reminded her, with a sharp kick to the stomach, of the way he had looked after the first time they had made love. Seeing his face like made Nikki feel like they were both fifteen again, both ready to fall in love.

_How times have changed …_ Nikki thought wistfully to herself. Running her eyes over Cameron's face, cast with a golden glow in the sunset, Nikki wished that things could have been simpler between them, that they could have lived happily ever after as childhood sweethearts. But apparently it wasn't on the cards for either of them to have anything remotely close to an easy life.

Cameron leant over to kiss her on the cheek, a gesture which embarrassingly made Nikki's cheeks colour. Flustered by her body's reaction, she quickly invited him in, thanking him profusely for coming and putting the bottle of white wine he had brought into the fridge to chill.

_Jeez, Nikki, get a grip of yourself. He's here for Lucie. NOT for you, dumbass._

Inhaling deeply she gestured for Cameron to sit down and poured him a drink.

"So, how've you been?"

As soon as he asked the question, Cameron knew it had been a stupid thing to say.

Nikki raised her eyebrows.

"Well, I've been bringing up Lucie in Miami – I'm working part-time as a sub in elementary schools, but Aunt Ava's been sending me monthly checks in the mail, no matter how many times I ask her not to. So yeah, we've been doing ok, I guess. Anyway, how about you, Cam?"

He took a sip of water and looked her in the eyes.

"Nik, I've been doing ok, but the truth is … well, the truth is I kinda …"

He gave a soft laugh.

"I kinda gave up a little bit when you'd left. My grades slipped, I didn't get into college … My mom started drinking again so that just kinda put a cherry on the top of the whole thing. I had to move out and find my own place, which wasn't exactly easy with no qualifications."

He sighed and shook his head, as though shaking away a daydream.

"Anyway, to cut a long story short, I moved out to L.A. for a year."

Nikki looked up, surprise etched all over her face.

"L.A?"

"Yeah, I know. I just sort of picked up and went, y'know?" He laughed again. "Of course you know … you did the exact same thing."

Nikki's eyes widened in protest.

"Cam, that's hardly fair! I left to protect you, and to protect me and Lucie. You make it sound like I just wanted a vacation!"

_Stupid, stupid! _Cameron berated himself for what he had said. _Great, now she thinks that you blame her for what happened._

He couldn't apologise enough.

"Nikki, I'm sorry, ok! Sorry, I just didn't think. Really, I completely didn't mean it to sound that way. Although I kinda wish you'd told me, mostly I just admire you so much for actually going through with it, even though it must have been scary. Jeez, Nik, we were fifteen!"

"Going through with it? Cam, you know I could never have got rid of our baby. Even if you didn't want me to have her, I just couldn't do that."

_Oh, well done Mr Tact. NOW she thinks that you wish she'd had an abortion._

Cameron made a mental note to try and say as little as possible in the next few minutes in order to prevent himself from making himself look like even more of an asshole.

Nikki took yet another deep breath and reached over to grasp Cameron's hands, fixing her eyes on his.

"Look, I just wanted to bring Lucie to see her daddy. This conversation isn't really helping, I don't think," they both grinned sheepishly, as if they really were back in their teens, "and maybe I should just go get her so that she can get to know you. Sound ok to you?"

He sighed with relief.

"Sounds great to me."

She smiled.

"Ok. Well she's actually just watching TV at the moment, I think. Probably some of that Disney crap that she loves so much. I'll be back in a sec."

When Nikki returned with his little blonde angel by her side, Cameron could not think of a sight he had seen that was more wonderful. Two girls who he loved with all his heart, and two that he had decided he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

The trouble was, he knew from past experience of Nikki's stubbornness and pride, and how difficult it would be to get her to come round. But he had to try. He just had to.

"Lucie, do you remember Cameron from when we met earlier?"

Lucie nodded, a slightly fearful expression on her delicate face, as though she were in some sort of trouble.

"Honey … he's your daddy. This is your daddy."


	6. Chapter 6

"_Lucie, do you remember Cameron from when we met earlier?"_

_Lucie nodded, a slightly fearful expression on her delicate face, as though she were in some sort of trouble._

"_Honey … he's your daddy. This is your daddy."_

88888

Although Nikki had half expected her daughter to get scared or run away when she first came face to face with her biological father, Lucie stood her ground and looked up into Cameron's face, searching it as if to validate what her mother had just said.

Seeming to accept it as the truth, after a couple of agonising seconds for the tense parents, Lucie shuffled over to Cameron who had crouched down on the floor and flung her arms around his neck.

"Hey sweetie" he whispered.

"Hi daddy" she whispered back.

Nikki couldn't help it – tears just sprang as if out of nowhere into the corners of her eyes and began running in thick hot streams down her cheeks. Watching Cameron hold their daughter so tightly in his arms, so tenderly, stimulated in her a bittersweet concoction of emotions. Whilst she couldn't have been happier at both Cam's and Lucie's reaction to the news, a part of her ached inside as she looked on the wonderful sight in front of her as she realised that she and Cameron weren't together any more.

He tilted his head up and opened his teary eyes, locking them onto Nikkis in a look which no words could have expressed. It was an understanding between them; a deep, deep love which they shared and which could never ever be broken.

Standing up, he carried Lucie cuddled on his hip over to Nikki and she embraced them both, unable to help an audible huge sob escaping her mouth. They stood like that for about five minutes which seemed to last for a lifetime, huddled together in the corner of the room, clinging to each other as if for dear life.

The intimate silence was broken at long last by a gigantic yawn from Lucie, and Nikki and Cameron both chuckled.

Lucie reached over for her mom and Nikki checked her watch.

"I guess I'd better take you to bed, little one, huh?"

Lucie's little face screwed up in anxiety.

"Will daddy be here when I get up tomorrow? I don't want him to leave again!"

Nikki glanced over at Cameron who widened his eyes and nodded his head ever so slightly. He still looked like he couldn't believe what was happening.

"Sure, daddy'll be here. He'll come by for breakfast, right? Would you like that?"

Lucie nodded sleepily, leaning over and planting a soft kiss on Cam's cheek.

"Night night, daddy." She was practically asleep now, her head resting back on Nikki's shoulder.

"Sleep tight, princess," he murmured.

After Nikki had put Lucie down for the night, she excused herself to go to the bathroom – for one thing, she really did need it, but she also needed a little time alone to clear her head slightly. The past hour had completely clouded her brain, emotions whirling around left right and centre. After about five minutes staring herself in the face in the bathroom mirror, Nikki decided she couldn't put it off any longer.

Taking a deep breath, she opened the door and went into the lounge, only to find that it was empty. However, a quick peek around the corner solved the puzzle: Nikki could see Cameron standing at Lucie's bedroom door, which she had accidentally left ajar, a look of wonder on his face.

Feeling mischievous all of a sudden, Nikki crept up behind him, getting up on tiptoes and whispering "BOO!" in his ear.

He jumped slightly and turned around startled.

"Hey you," he smiled.

"Right back at you," Nikki grinned back. "Shall we …"

She gestured towards the couch, where their wine and food was waiting on the coffee table.

For the rest of the evening they ate, drank, laughed and chatted, and Nikki couldn't remember why she would ever have wanted to leave this boy. This _man_.

For all the years they had been apart, she had told herself that she was building up an unrealistic image of Cameron – that she was merely fantasising because she hadn't seen him in so long. Unfortunately, that near-perfect memory she held of him turned out to be pretty close to reality.

It got to about twenty minutes past midnight, when Nikki suddenly realised how much time had passed.

"God, Cam, look at the time …"

Although she knew it was the right thing to do, she couldn't bring herself to suggest that he go home. Like Lucie, she didn't want him to leave again.

"Yeah….uh, I should, I should probably be getting off now."

There was a moment's pause, which was longer than it should have been.

"Cam, you could always stay here if you want – I'll sleep with Lucie and you take my room"

He protested, but not enough and she could see that he too wanted to stay.

"Seriously, it's fine! It's too late for you to be getting back now anyway. I'll just go change the sheets for you."

Cameron laughed.

"Nik … I'm not really bothered by using the same sheets as you, as I'm sure you'll recall …"

She blushed _again_ and berated herself for it. Nikki felt Cameron moving towards her turned back, and she spun around only to be met by his face inches away from hers.

"Cam, I- " she began, only to be silenced by the soft touch of his lips on hers.

Pulling away, she looked seriously at him and studied his face.

"Are you sure?" she whispered.

He grinned and answered her with another kiss, this one more forceful and urgent, which she couldn't help but respond enthusiastically to.

As they rapidly undressed each other the pair moved gradually to Nikki's room. Cameron lay Nikki down on the bed leaning over her, and in between kisses he said breathlessly,

"Hello stranger."


	7. Chapter 7

Nikki's eyes flickered awake reluctantly, and she turned her head to check the time. Suddenly memories of what had happened the night before came rushing through her mind. A feeling of pure happiness warmed her from the inside and although she looked at the clock, she didn't register the time - or anything else other than whose arm was around her. A strong, tanned, fair-haired arm belonging to none other than Cameron Bale. The boy whose heart had been broken when she moved away and who she had made love to for the first time in five years last night. With their little daughter Lucie sleeping in the next room and the California sun seeping through the thin curtains Nikki felt that this was as close to perfection as her life could get for a long while.

Then she heard a muffled cry which brought her back down to reality. Cameron sat up, startled, and rubbed his eyes. Nikki smiled.

"It's ok, it's just Lucie. I'll go … get back to sleep Cam."

She slipped out of bed and padded down the corridor to Lucie's room.

"What's up sweetie?"

Lucie huddled in the corner of her bed gathering her sheets all around her.

"I had a horrible dream, mommy. It was horrible!"

Nikki drew her arms firmly around her little girl and held her tight, stroking her fine blond hair.

"That's all it was, pumpkin. Just a dream. It's gone now. Shhh. Shhh. It's all ok. Mommy's here with you."

Lucie shuddered as her little sobs came to a halt and she breathed deeply, like when a child is trying to get rid of hiccups.

"Shall I get you some breakfast honey?"

Lucie nodded dolefully.

"Ok, what would you like? I'll see what Aunt Ava's got in the kitchen. I'll be right back, sweetie."

As she searched the cupboards in her aunt's kitchen, Nikki began to realise that Ava had probably not left much because she had thought she'd be staying in Miami for a while… whoops. That plan didn't exactly work out.

When she found the fridge as empty as all the cupboards, Nikki decided she would take her daughter out for breakfast. Living on a budget, it was something they rarely did at home, but she concluded that today was a day to be remembered.

As she walked towards the bedroom door, she heard voices coming from inside, and peeking round the door she saw Cameron sitting on the bed under the covers, Lucie snuggled on his knee telling him all about her dream.

"And then – and then there were snakes. They were everywhere! It was so scary! And you were there, and mommy too, and, and, and …."

Clearly troubled by the recollection of what seemed to Nikki like a fairly bizarre nightmare, Lucie began to breath quickly again and tears were in her eyes. Cameron wrapped his arms around her and held her to his bare chest, one hand gently stroking the side of her face and wiping the tears away.

_Great_, Nikki thought. _Like I need more reasons to fall in love with this guy._

Cameron was so engrossed in his daughter that he didn't even look up when Nikki entered the room.

"Hey" she said softly.

He looked up, surprised, but evidently happy to see her.

"Oh, hey!"

"I thought we could go out for breakfast – there's not much in the house. How's that sound, honey?" she added to Lucie.

Lucie clapped her tiny hands in delight and Cam grinned.

"Sure, let's go! Let's get you dressed, cupcake."

Nikki began to say that she would do it, but Cameron held a hand up.

"It's fine – I want to."

They held each others' gaze for a few seconds before Lucie tugged the bottom of Cameron's boxers, wanting to show him the new clothes Nikki had bought her yesterday.

He looked down, looking genuinely interested in what she was saying, and Nikki chuckled to herself as she went to get ready, hoping that today would be as good as she was hoping that it would.

**A/N sorry that this is so short, but more will follow soon, I promise! Thanks to all those who read and reviewed this story, your comments mean a awful lot to me. xoxo**


	8. Chapter 8

As Cameron strolled confidently to his car, Lucie perched smiling on his shoulders, Nikki couldn't believe this was the same boy who had once been afraid to answer his front door for fear of angering his father. Strapping Lucie safely into the back seat, Nikki settled comfortably beside Cameron in the front and flicked on the radio as the engine started. The journey that followed was pure bliss – Lucie singing in the background as Cameron laughed happily next to her, with Nikki herself letting the breeze from the wound-down window whip across her face, her eyes closed serenely.

They parked up at a little breakfast place that Cameron said he practically lived in nowadays and found themselves a small booth at the back, but not before Nikki had insisted on wiping down the sticky table-top.

Feeling a little queasy at the sight of the plates of eggs and bacon making their way to the table, Nikki excused herself and found her way to the restroom, leaning against the locked cubicle door and exhaling deeply. Suddenly she felt a sharp, almost stabbing pain in her stomach, and she squeezed the strap of her purse for a little support, trying to stop herself from crying out. She had only ever felt this pain once before, but that had been in an entirely different situation …

_Nikki opened the door and noticeably recoiled at the waft of alcoholic breath which immediately hit her in the face._

"_Oh, hi Mr Bale"_

_She edged back slightly, not having the courage yet to ask him why he was here when he was supposed to be at a rehabilitation centre._

"_Nikki, Cameron didn't come home last night. Where is he?"_

_She shifted a little awkwardly but tried not to let on what had really been going on._

"_Uh, Cam and I went to a movie and it was getting late so he decided to stay the night here. On our couch" she added quickly. "But, Mr Bale, Cameron's been staying at his mom's. He hasn't been home in a while."_

_He laughed drunkenly, with a vicious edge to his slurring voice. "Anyone would think that boy was avoiding his own father!"_

_Nikki smiled, embarrassed to see Kyle making such a fool of himself. She decided to go and fetch her aunt Ava, who surely would know what to do._

_Unfortunately for her, Cameron's dad seemed to misinterpret her smile as a smirk._

"_What, you think this is funny, little girl? You think I'm some sort of hilarious joke?"_

_Nikki opened her mouth to speak, shocked, but was cut off straight away._

"_Yeah, I bet you and Cam have a good laugh to yourselves behind my back."_

_He chuckled softly to himself, before suddenly changing__ tack._

"_Well don't think I don't know what you and Cameron are doing, you little whore! You're 15! Corrupting my boy like that, you're a slut just like your aunt."_

_By this time he was shaking a tearful Nikki by the shoulders. Bravely, or in retrospect probably stupidly, Nikki decided to stand up for herself._

"_Mr Bale, Cameron and I, we're not-" she began, but was cut off again – this time by a slap to the face. _

_Now Kyle was out of control, kicking Nikki and screaming at her, causing Cameron to race downstairs to see what was going on._

_Seeing the terrifying scene before him, Cam ran over to try and pull his dad off of his girlfriend__ but was rewarded with a punch to his own face, knocking him right across the room, where he landed at Ava's feet as she hurried inside to find out what was happening._

_After Kyle had been collected by the centre's staff, who apologised profusely for the lapse in security, Nikki brushed off Cameron's attempts to comfort her and rushed off to the bathroom where she burst into tears before feeling a sharp pain stab her abdomen and realising something definitely wasn't right. She pulled off her underwear to find stains of blood, seeming to signify that the pregnancy that she had been hiding from everyone was soon to be a forgotten worry (or so she thought at the time)._

_However, a month later when she realised she was still very much pregnant with Cameron's baby, she had decided not to tell him. She couldn't bring herself to put her little baby in the kind of danger that Cameron's dad had threatened._

Coming back to reality, Nikki shook herself physically in an attempt to shake off the awful memories which had just come flooding back to her and calmly took a deep breath and walked back into the diner, sliding comfortably into the booth next to her little girl.

It was funny, she thought, that to other people seated around them they must have looked like the perfect Californian couple with their perfect little blonde angel, eating breakfast out on a Sunday morning in the sunshine. Who would have guessed that such a superficially beautiful couple could have had such an ugly past?


	9. Chapter 9

Cameron dropped Lucie and Nikki back at the house around two in the afternoon, after a long breakfast followed by a leisurely walk along the beach. As they said their goodbyes, Ava opened the front door and Lucie ran over to her open arms for a huge squashy hug. Nikki meanwhile was finding it more difficult to say goodbye.

"So, I guess … I'll see you around?"

She looked at him without wanting to appear _too_ hopeful. However all her fears were quelled when he beamed at her and said,

"Sure! I'd love that." There was a little pause during which neither quite knew what to do, until Cameron awkwardly blurted out: "Hey, Nik … wanna go out for dinner tomorrow night? I mean, like, on a proper date? We don't seem to have ever had many of those."

She chuckled and her heart soared.

"Of course. That would be great. Around seven? I'll ask Ava to watch Lucie."

They smiled shyly at each other, saying goodbye for the second time, and Cameron leaned in to kiss Nikki on the cheek – before Nikki gently grabbed his face and kissed him passionately on the lips, feeling his arms tighten around her waist and everything around them going fuzzy. She wasn't sure how long the kiss had lasted, but both broke off at the same time, feeling considerably dazed.

Cameron chuckled.

"I'll pick you up tomorrow then. Bye!"

Watching him drive away, Nikki felt for the first time that there was some hope for them – that their relationship _wouldn't_ end in disaster as it had done so many times in the past.

88888888

For what seemed like the hundredth time that night, Cameron looked across the table at Nikki and exhaled.

"Nikki … you look _so_ beautiful. Really, just … amazing."

And for the hundredth time for her, Nikki blushed and smiled this time adding.

"Well, Cam, you're not looking so bad yourself either!"

They had just eaten dessert and it looked like it was time for them to get the check and be on their way. It was clear just from looking at each other that neither wanted the night to end there.

Feeling their feet accidentally brush under the table, Nikki grinned and slid her foot out of her high heel, rubbing Cameron's ankle with her toes.

Having paid the check, Cameron escorted Nikki out of the restaurant and barely waited until they had reached the door before his hand was around her waist and his lips softly kissing the side of her neck just below her ear.

"Cam!" Nikki started to become embarrassed as his hand became ever more wandering and she playfully tapped it with her own, scolding him.

"Wait until we're in the car at least!"

Reluctantly he parted with her briefly to actually get into the car, but once there he couldn't stop himself.

"I've missed you so much Nik" he breathed.

She answered him with yet another forceful series of kisses.

"I've missed you too Cam. More than I thought I would."

For the second time in the space of two days, Nikki found herself lying on her bed looking up into the face of a boy who she had previously thought was lost to her forever.

"Hey you." She smiled, cupping his face with her hands.

Their lips met again, their faces pushing into each other more and more urgently as Nikki reached for Cameron's belt before tugging off his jeans.

Quickly a pile of both their clothes built itself up on the bedroom floor and there was very little talking to be done.

88888888

Nikki woke earlier than usual and, lifting Cameron's arm from where it was draped across her stomach, padded into the kitchen to find Ava and Lucie – only to be met with a note from her aunt saying that they had gone out for the day and would probably be at the beach if they were needed. Just as Nikki started to pour herself a coffee she felt hands at her waist and a soft familiar pair of lips nuzzling her neck through her unkempt hair. Although the sensation was obviously nice, the initial slight shock of having him creep up on her like that reminded Nikki uncomfortably of the vivid flashback she had had in the bathroom of the diner the day before.

She realised suddenly that the memory of Cameron's dad was hanging over their relationship and that nothing further could happen between them until she cleared the air – she needed to tell him about everything that had happened that day and the fact that it was still haunting her even now.

Nikki turned and fixed her eyes on his.

"Cam, we need to talk."

He grinned.

"Uh oh. Sounds like I'm in trouble!"

She swatted his arm and then grabbed his hand, taking him over to the table to sit down.

"No, I'm serious!"

Noting the tone of her voice, Cameron suddenly stopped joking around and looked anxious.

"Nik, are you ok? What's up?"

He stroked her hand which was clasped in his own.

"Nothing. Well … not _nothing._ I was feeling a little bit weird yesterday. A little bit queasy. And I guess … I guess it just got me thinking, about-"

But before she could finish, Nikki was abruptly interrupted by her aunt bursting through the door, a look of obvious worry on her face and Lucie clutched to her hip.

"Oh my god, Cam, I thought you'd be here. I don't know how to tell you this… but…"

Now it was Cameron's turn to look scared.

"What? Ava, what is it?"

"Oh, Cam … it's your dad. He's dead. He died early this morning in a car accident. They're not completely sure yet but the police said they thought he'd been drinking. Oh, Cam, I'm so sorry."


	10. Chapter 10

Cameron and Nikki both stood up and simultaneously yelled "What?" before Cam covered his mouth in horror whilst Nikki walked over to her aunt.

"What happened, Ava? When? I mean – how could he have … he was at the … the centre…"

Right after saying this Nikki realised how pointless her argument was – as she had only too painfully remembered yesterday, it wasn't usually difficult for Cameron's dad to escape from the notice of his carers at the institution.

Ava swallowed hard and looked Cameron straight in the eye as tears began to flow hotly down his cheek.

"Cam … it was very early this morning … they've found traces of whisky in the car. He collided with a disused building… god. I am truly sorry." Her shoulders sank and she sighed. "I don't know what to say."

Cameron roughly brushed his hands over his wet cheeks and cleared his throat.

"And, uh … does- does my mom know?"

"I think the police have contacted her."

Nikki watched in tears as Cameron began to hurriedly gather up his stuff and pull his jeans on. He rushed over to her, and she squeezed him tightly, whispering in his ear:

"I'll be right here Cam, when you need it. I'll be here."

She kissed his cheek and held his gaze.

"I'll call you Nik, I just…I gotta go …"

She almost smiled a little.

"Stop apologising, baby, I understand. Of course I do!"

Cam leant down gently to kiss her lips, and then rushed out, still apologising as he went.

As soon as his feet had crossed the threshold, Nikki collapsed into her aunts arms whilst Ava stroked her hair tenderly. More than anything, Nikki was feeling a confusing mix of sadness, guilt and anger. A thousand thoughts were whirling around her brain.

_What if Cam hadn't been with me last night? Why does he even care about Kyle anymore? Why am I so jealous? Why can't I just be sympathetic instead of judging Cameron? And why can't we just have a normal relationship?_

On top of all this, Kyle's car accident inevitably caused old feelings which she had hoped were gone and buried to resurface – about her parents, and the resentment she had felt when they met their untimely fate.

"I miss him, Ava. I miss them. Everyone just goes away. Cam and I were getting on so well … things are going great. And I feel awful for thinking that … for thinking that …"

Although feeling nervous, Nikki felt she had to spit it out to try and achieve some kind of peace of mind.

"I keep feeling like Kyle is even ruining things for Cam, and for me, now that he's dead."

It sounded more shocking to her now that she had said it, and she immediately regretted it as her aunt remained silent for a few moments.

"Oh god, Ava, just forget I said that. I didn't mean it. And it's a horrible thing to even think."

Ava wrapped her arms around Nikki even more.

"No, it isn't. And you're not the only one who was thinking it. You know, for once it was nice to see you and Cam almost … settled. But hey," she said, seeing the sadness on her niece's face. "It's just a blip. But you have to let Cameron grieve. Kyle was his dad … and we need to respect that."

88888888

Three weeks later, and the only time Nikki had seen Cameron was at Kyle's funeral, where they obviously hadn't had much of a chance for chatting.

No call, no nothing. No contact whatsoever. Nikki was trying to hold on waiting for him, but now her patience was wearing thin.

Having found herself a job as a sub at the local elementary school, she and Lucie were still living with Ava, but after what had almost been a month of silence from Cameron, she was seriously considering packing up and heading back to Miami.

The only rational explanation she could muster in her mind was that Cam, after the sudden and painful loss of his father, had begun to freak out about being a dad to his own daughter… which made Nikki's other problem all the more awkward.

The day after the funeral, she had vomited violently at around 6am and knew immediately what was up. Morning sickness had been exactly the same with Lucie, and the pregnancy test she had taken that morning had confirmed that she was having another baby. Whilst initially she had been overjoyed – she and Cameron certainly had a knack for accidental pregnancies – her heart had quickly sunk as she remembered that they weren't speaking any more. The worst part was that it wasn't even an angry silence. She just felt so abandoned, and it broke her heart every time Lucie asked where her daddy was only to be met with a hopeful "maybe we'll see him soon, sweetie," from her mother.

A month ago, Nikki would have been delighted to tell Cam that they were having another baby, but recent events made her feel like she was in the same situation as she had been five years ago – having to hide her baby away and move back to Miami.

She decided it was for the best if she didn't contact Cameron. Maybe this was his stupid, 'jellyfish' way of telling her that he had chickened out of his responsibilities and that he wasn't ready to resume their relationship, yet again.

Hopefully they would meet again, but as Nikki flopped down onto her bed and sobbed for the third time that week, she saw her dream of a perfect family with the man she loved fading further and further away.


	11. Chapter 11

_**This chapter takes place two weeks after the preceding one.**_

Nikki inhaled a deep breath of warm California air as she mustered the courage to actually step inside the hospital rather than hovering in the parking lot like a moron. She felt a familiar hand grip hers strongly and protectively, but her heart sank when she remembered yet again that it wasn't Cameron's.

"Nik, honey, it's gonna be just fine … you'll see. There's nothing to worry about. Lucie and I are here."

Her aunt's comforting maternal tone made Nikki feel, as she had been feeling for the past few weeks, that she was fifteen and trouble again.

She let the deep breath go slowly and clutched her little girl to her hip as they made their way inside.

88888888

"And here … here's your baby's heartbeat. Right there. Everything looks great."

Nikki let out an involuntary gasp as little droplets of tears filled her eyes until they were overflowing – although she had already done this once before, the scan just seemed to illuminate the enormity of what she was again trying to do on her own, and also the total and utter miraculous beauty of carrying a baby inside her.

Cameron's baby.

"Would you like to know the sex?"

This was one thing at least on which Nikki's mind was clear.

"No, I don't. I want another surprise."

She grinned at Lucie (who the day before had been extremely excited to be told she would be getting a new brother or sister), unable to contain her joy at seeing her new baby for the first time, no matter what awkward circumstances it looked set to be born into.

There was still nothing from Cameron – no visit, no letter of explanation, not even a single phone call. Nikki had already decided not to tell him about the baby, but seeing this first scan up there stirred something powerful in her … she couldn't bear not to share it with him. Because no matter what had happened or would ever happen between them, Nikki loved Cameron with all her heart and she couldn't stand to deprive him of the happiness of moments like these for a second time. She had made up her mind.

So, that Saturday, she drove alone over to Cameron's mom's house on the outskirts of town – if he wasn't there, at least his mother could tell her where he was. Her stomach twisted in on itself as she rang the doorbell, almost as if her baby knew it was about to meet its daddy.

The surprise on Sarah's face to see this particular girl on her doorstep again was evident. Obviously Cameron had not told his mother about their little reunion.

"Oh, hey Nikki. When did you get back into town?"

"Hi. A couple of months ago, actually."

Sarah looked confused, but Nikki ignored it and moved on.

"Um, is Cameron here?"

"Actually, he is. You know, you guys must be psychic or something – he never comes round here and then you turn up again and he's in his bedroom!"

Nikki smiled.

"Can I-?"

"Sure, go on up!" She paused. "You know, Nikki, it sure is nice to see you again."

"Thanks. You too."

Swallowing what was left of her pride and attempting to quell the fluttering nerves in her stomach, Nikki began to climb the stairs, heading for a room that she vaguely remembered as Cameron's – a feeling validated by the faint tapping sounds of a computer keyboard and mouse which she could her through the slightly open door.

Without knocking, she gently creaked the door open and Cameron spun around in his chair, quickly switching off his computer monitor as he did so.

"Hey … you're not my mom …"

They smiled awkwardly at each other.

"Uh … no, not exactly. Sorry to turn up like this, but-"

Cameron stood up swiftly and said softly,

"Nik, you have nothing to be sorry for. It's me who should be apologising to you… I haven't been straight with you, and that … that was wrong. And I am sorry. Truly."

She moved in a little closer and looked directly into his eyes.

"Cam … it's ok, I get it. I realise it's been hard for you, what with Lucie, and us getting together again…it's confused me too. So I totally understand your decision to break it off. Luce and I are going back to Miami soon anyway … god; I don't know what I was thinking…"

She tried not to hold Cameron's gaze for too long or else she just knew that the tears she was fighting to hold back would come spilling out.

However, Cam had other ideas.

"What? Nikki, what are you saying? That you … you don't want to see me again? It's … it's over?"

The hurt in his voice was unmistakeable and it confused Nikki's feelings all the more.

"Cameron, of course I do. It's just … it's just … I assumed that's how _you_ felt. I've been in the dark for almost two months, Cam! You know, you can't just abandon me – and more importantly your daughter – whenever you're hurting!" She clasped his hands, now making no attempt to stop the tears. "But I love you, Cam, and I can't bear to let you hurt me again."

Just as she began to leave the room, Cameron grabbed her arm and shut the door.

"When I said that I hadn't been straight with you, Nik, it wasn't just about us … it was about my dad."

Nikki began to speak, bewildered – _what does Kyle have to do with all this?_ – but he silenced her.

"A couple of days after the funeral, mom was given a bunch of papers and other stuff from dad's desk, to see if he'd made a will or something. Well, anyway, there was a letter in there – a letter addressed to me."

This time it was Cameron letting the tears fall unashamedly.

"He did it on purpose, Nik. He- he said that…he said that he was so sorry for what he had done to me –you know, the …" Nikki nodded solemnly and rubbed Cameron's arm. "He said that he couldn't live with himself anymore, and that the only way he could be a good father to me would be …would be to … to … to disappear."

At this point Cameron couldn't control it any longer and Nikki held him in her arms as he shook with huge sobs.

"It's ok, Cam. Everything's ok. I'm here …. Don't worry."

He sat up suddenly, his voice cracking painfully with raw emotion.

"But Nik, it's not ok! I've abandoned my own beautiful little girl, not to mention messed things up well and truly for us, but … but can't you see? I couldn't call because… because…"

"Because what, Cam?"

"Because I might turn out just like him! I can't put Lucie through that!"

Nikki looked at him seriously.

"Cameron Bale, you listen to me. You will _never_ be anything like your father. You are loving, kind, generous, considerate, compassionate, and I love you."

He smiled weakly, still shaking a little.

"I love you Nikki. So much."

"Good, now that we've got that sorted…"

They both chuckled a little.

"I am sorry Cam. About your dad. No-one wants to read that kind of thing."

"I'm just sorry I had to involve you, Nik."

"But, Cameron isn't it obvious? I will _always_ be involved. I love you too much not to be …don't ever shut me out again, okay?"

"Ok."

He cupped her face gently in his hands and their lips met in a tender, yet somehow feverish kiss. Obviously a long absence really had made the heart grow fonder.

Suddenly without warning, Nikki felt herself wanting to blurt IT out. IT. Her big secret.

"Also, Cam? I have some news … I'm pregnant again!"


	12. Chapter 12

Cameron's startlingly blue eyes washed over with a thin sheet of tears and he tried hard to focus on Nikki whilst also trying to judge from her relatively blank facial expression the way _she_ was feeling about it.

"You're … you're pregnant?"

The both broke out into simultaneous wide grins and Nikki replied tearfully:

"Yeah … I guess we sort of have a knack for this kinda thing!"

"But why – why didn't you tell me before?"

He squeezed her hand tightly whilst still holding her gaze intently.

"Well I guess I was just worried. Y'know, I thought you were freaking out about us, so I didn't want to make the situation any worse by dropping another bombshell!"

Cameron stroked her face and leaned in to softly join his lips with hers in a deep and tender kiss which seemed to last forever.

Finally he broke away gently and lifted her chin with his finger.

"Nik, I am so, _so_ happy about this. I mean … you don't know how much this means to me. And I hope that we can give things another go?"

He looked at her hopefully and she couldn't resist that beautiful, open face.

"Sure. Just as long as you don't disappear on me again!" She went to playfully tap his arm but he caught her hand in his own and grabbed her again for another searing kiss, this one more urgent than the last.

As they broke away again, Cameron moved his hands towards her stomach, and Nikki's skin tightened in shivers as she felt her baby and its father connecting so closely. Cam obviously felt it too, as he looked up in wonder into her eyes, wrapping his arms around her and holding on firmly, planting soft kisses in her hair and on the soft scented skin of her neck.

"And how's our baby doing?"

"It's fine, I had a scan just the other day and everything is looking great!" She paused, shaking her head. "I can't believe how lucky I am, Cameron. You are the most perfect guy I have ever met."

When he laughed, embarrassed, and shrugged his shoulders, she cut him off forcefully.

"No, Cam, I mean it! The way you've been there for me … stuck by me … I can't believe how wonderful you've been to me. And I don't know how I can ever repay you."

He chuckled and kissed her again, rubbing her little nose with his own as they parted once more.

"Hmm, well …let's see. I think love will do just fine." He paused, grinning. "Oh, and letting _me_ pick the movies we watch in the future – I can only sit through 'Moulin Rouge' so many times."

Leaning back on his elbows on the bed, Cameron then completely lay down with his head bouncing down on the pillow. Nikki lowered herself down too, and nestled her head on Cameron's shoulder as his arm wound its way around her, entwining her and her baby in a safe cocoon of warmth and love. She had never felt more secure in her life.

They lay there for about an hour, just kissing and talking about the future. Nikki wanted to move out of Playa Linda, get a new start, and find a teaching job somewhere else. And Cameron – well he still wasn't completely sure what he even wanted to do in his career, so he could easily find some kind of work anywhere. At about two in the afternoon, they decided to go back over to Ava's, pick up Lucie and take her out for the day – she had been missing her daddy and it seemed like a little quality family time was in order.

Later that afternoon as they watched Lucie play on the beach, Nikki and Cameron sat side by side, just like all those years ago.

"Do you know the sex?"

"No, I wanted to have a surprise, like I did with Luce."

Cameron looked over tenderly to where his little girl was attempting (and pretty much failing) to dig a small hole in the sand, which she was filling with shells for reasons unknown to anyone but her.

"I kinda want another girl. I mean, whenever I thought about having children I always thought I would want boys who I could … I don't know, teach them to be men or something …" he laughed as he said this, shaking his head. "But now, seeing Lucie … anyway, I'll be happy either way."

She returned his smile.

"Me too."

Interrupted by the cries of a little girl with sand in her eyes, Nikki switched suddenly to 'super-mom' mode, with Cameron watching her expertly extracting baby wipes, cotton wool and various other alien items from her seemingly bottomless tote.

With Lucie having been calmed and cleaned up, they strolled back to Ava's for a quiet dinner. When she opened the door to this little family of three standing on the step, Nikki's aunt had to catch her breath: they looked so beautiful, so _happy_.

She had immediately enveloped Cam in a hug which, slender though she was, had knocked out what felt like most of the air from his lungs. He returned it earnestly, and Nikki clutched Lucie's hand as she finally watched what hopefully was her life gradually falling into place.

After dinner, Cameron disappeared with a smile to tuck Lucie in and Nikki and Ava slumped down on the couch, glasses of orange juice and red wine respectively swirling in their hands.

"So Nik … are you and Cameron … you know? Together?"

Nikki didn't even try to hide the all-consuming joy which she felt whenever she thought about Cam.

"Uh….yeah, I guess. We're giving it a go. Being a family, and all that …"

Ava held her niece's hand.

"I couldn't be happier for you, sweetie. Truly. I think you and Cam are perfect for each other, I always have."

They sat and chatted for a while longer until Cameron finally re-appeared.

"Hon, what took you so long?"

"Three Disney storybooks, that's what. Boy, does she love those!"

He shrugged his shoulders wearily, as though he didn't really adore reading to his daughter, watching her fall asleep gradually and hearing delicate little snores whistling through her pursed lips.

"I'd actually better get going, but I'll come by again tomorrow … we kinda have a lot to talk about!"

Nikki nodded.

"Sure. I'll walk you out."

Ava watched wistfully as Cameron took Nikki's hand and led her through the door, before he turned to add:

"Thanks Ava – for everything. Especially the dinner, it was delicious! See you tomorrow!"

"Bye, Cam, see you tomorrow."

Curling her feet underneath her as she sipped the dregs of her wine, Ava couldn't help but wonder what the future held for the pair of them, but she knew one thing – she hoped that it ran smoother than their past had done. They deserved that at least.

**A/N… Hello!! Sorry sorry sorry that it has taken me so ridiculously long to update this fic, but I have had a crazy amount of schoolwork to do etc etc. Anyway, hope you enjoy the chapter – I realise it's quite fluffy, but there is plenty of drama to come, never fear :D Please read and review if you can – it's kind of annoying when you see that your fic has a huge number of hits but very few reviews. But whatever, the comments that people do make mean a huge amount to me, so keep them coming!! Bye for now, and I promise it won't be this long until the next one!**

**Peace xoxoxo**


	13. Chapter 13

"And so if you draw a line right here, then the pattern will join up and you have your graph. You see? Ok guys, I'll give you a couple of minutes to do it in your workbooks, and then we'll come back together to see what we've found out. Ok, off you go!"

Nikki sighed as the class turned back to focus on the squiggles and crosses on the squared paper of their Math books. She had barely gotten any sleep last night – it turned out that apparently 'morning sickness wasn't exactly choosy about the specific time of day when it decided to hit – and she and Cameron hadn't left the house on good terms.

She hated days like this: lack of sleep made them both grouchy, and then the slightest thing the next morning would totally set either of them off. This morning it had been Cameron taking a call on his cell during breakfast then avoiding her eyes and making excuses when she tried to find out who it had been from.

Whatever. Nikki had decided to let it go. It had been four months since she had moved into Cameron's little apartment just outside Playa Linda, and it was too soon for her to let this little stuff wind her up so much.

She took a deep breath, hoisted herself up onto her feet and stood beside the chalk board.

"Ok kids. What have we got? Oh, actually, hold that thought – the bell for lunch is gonna go in about …."

The end of her sentence hung in the air as the piercing ring of the bell buzzed through the school.

"Alright then, see you after lunch!"

As soon as the last child had scrambled from the classroom, Nikki collapsed into the chair behind her desk, feeling guilty as she heaved a huge sigh of relief. As much as she loved teaching, this was her first full-time job and being quite heavily pregnant made it a hell of a lot more testing.

She rubbed a hand over her protruding bump, leaning over to the floor to rummage around in her bag for a bottle of water. When she lifted her head back up, the precious bottle grasped in her hand, her eyes widened at the sight of a cute tanned face poking round the door, a sheepish grin spread right across it.

"Hey…"

"Hey!"

"Listen … sorry about this morning, Nik. I was out of line. It's just … I don't really know-"

"Cam, it really doesn't matter. I overreacted … people tend to get a little tetchy when they've been throwing up the entire contents of their stomach all night."

She smiled at the worried look on his face.

"Seriously, Cameron, it's ok!"

An instant look of relief visibly settled on his face.

"Ok, good, because we need to talk. I brought food!"

8888888888888

Along with sandwiches lemonade and fruit salad, it turned out that Cameron had brought a little plaid picnic blanket, which they were now sat on having spread their little feast out on the classroom floor.

"Anyway … what did you wanna talk about Cam?"

"Uhh, it's kinda difficult to explain. Well. Not difficult to explain, but just kinda hard to tell you."

"Ok, honey, you're really scaring me now. Seriously – just tell me."

She focused totally on his eyes, seeing the fear that lurked behind that arresting shimmering blue.

"Well. That call this morning was from my bank. You see – oh god, Nik, please don't judge me, or hate me – I'm in so much debt. You know I told you about my time in L.A?"

She nodded.

"I ran up huge credit card bills while I was there. Spending all my money on a crazy lifestyle that I didn't even want to be living… And when I came home I found out that my parents couldn't lend me any … no-one would give me a job …"

He buried his head in his hands.

"Basically I'm going down fast. Unless I get some kind of miracle in the next six months, I'm going to be bankrupt."

She heard now that his voice was thick with tears.

"God, all I seem to do is let you down…first Lucie, and now this new baby…Maybe you really would be better off without me. I'm just trouble."

Nikki felt for the first time a small flash of annoyance.

"Cameron, get over yourself and your self-pity! Everyone is in debt! Hell, I'm in pretty much the same situation as you – toddlers aren't cheap y'know!"

Grasping his hand, her voice softened and she looked deeply into his eyes.

"I know you're scared. I'm terrified. Money worries, jobs, children …. We're real adults now, whether we like it or not."

Nikki let out a low chuckle.

"And as for all that 'you'd be better off without me' crap …" Suddenly the chuckle was gone and she was deadly serious. "Without you, Cameron Bale, I would be heartbroken. Utterly and completely devastated. And I don't think that would be better for me – or for our babies … do you?"

Lifting his chin with her finger, she wiped the hot tears from his flushed cheeks and kissed him tenderly but firmly, their lips sealing together in a passionate lock.

As they broke away, she paused before continuing the conversation.

"But, you're right. We should be worried about money – how much debt exactly are we talking? Because I've got my pay check coming soon…we have enough saved to pay off at least one credit card, I'm sure!"

Cameron smiled a warm, deeply grateful and genuinely awestruck smile. It was hard for him to believe that people like Nikki actually existed. He kept waiting to discover some major flaw in her personality, but the days kept rolling and she remained as incredible as ever.

Their baby was going to be born in under four months' time, and he was determined to make things right by then. He couldn't let his children grow up seeing their father as an incompetent unqualified hack who would fail to put food on the table. No, he had had quite enough experience of an awful father during his own childhood, and he refused to succumb to the self-pity which Nikki had so rightly ridiculed.

As he embraced Nikki over their paper cups of lemonade on the picnic blanket he felt a warmth rush straight through him at the feel of her extended stomach pressed against his own, and for the first time felt a slight kick against his t-shirt.

"Oh my god…Cam, did you feel that?"

One look at his goofy love-struck face gave Nikki all the answer she needed.

She had told him that the baby had kicked before, but this was the first time he had been there to experience it. Resting his palms over her belly-button and feeling the little foot poking the inside of her stomach, Cameron felt totally ecstatic and yet completely serene at the same time.

It was as if this was the natural order of things – this was the way things were meant to be.


End file.
